Hardware Evaluation and Selection

1. Hardware Evaluation and Selection James D. Lehman Educational Technology Purdue University

2. Ideal Process • Go through the following steps: • Assess your needs • Select software that will meet your needs • Purchase hardware that will operate the selected software • The ideal rarely occurs anymore. Most schools and businesses already have an established hardware base, so compatibility with that base becomes an overriding concern.

3. Major Educational Systems • Apple Macintosh family • Represents about 30% of computers in U.S. schools • IBM and compatibles (Wintel) family • Represents about 70% of computers in U.S. schools

4. Software availability Screen display Keyboard/mouse External storage Other peripherals Service Processor Sound capability Internal memory Printer Expandability Cost System Selection Criteria We will look more closely at each of these criteria.

5. Software Availability • Educational software • Both Wintel and Mac are widely represented in the educational software market. • Tool applications • Wintel family dominates the overall tool market, although Mac is popular in niches such as graphic design, video production, etc. • Systems software • Mac pioneered the user friendly OS; the Wintel family caught up with Windows 95 and beyond.

6. Processor • Both processor type and speed of operation (MHz) determine overall system speed. • Wintel family • Based on Intel chips up through the latest dual-processor models • Mac family • Recently switched from PowerPC processors to Intel processors.

7. Screen Display • Screen display issues include: • type of display • size of the display (measured in inches diagonally like TVs) • resolution (number of pixels) • color (number of available colors) • Capabilities depend both on the actual display as well as the video card and available video memory

8. Screen Display • Wintel family • Evolved through CGA, EGA, mCGA, VGA, SVGA and now XGA and SXGA standards. • Mac family • Evolved through B/W, 8 bit, 16 bit, and 24-32 bit (true color) systems. • 32-128 M of video memory (VRAM) is common today. The more VRAM the greater the resolution and color display possible. Games often use part of the capacity for video rendering as well.

9. Sound • In today's multimedia computers, sound is often a very important element. • Wintel family • Digital sound sometimes must be added via an optional board (e.g., Sound Blaster). • Mac family • Digital sound input and output is built into all Macintosh computers and has been from their inception.

10. Keyboard and Mouse • Wintel family • Pioneered the use of function keys, number pads, and other useful features on keyboard. Two button mouse and a scrolling wheel for added functionality. Optical mouse eliminates many of the problems with mechanical mice. • Mac family • Some Mac systems have a smaller keyboard with less functionality than typical Wintel desktop machines. One button mouse is used for simplicity.

11. Internal Memory • Memory is critically important for operating systems and large applications. Most computers now need 256-512M of main memory for minimal functioning. More is becoming increasingly necessary (1-2G is recommended for Windows Vista). It is a good idea to get plenty of memory when purchasing a system; memory is usually relatively inexpensive at purchase time.

12. External Storage • Floppy Disks • 3 1/2" - 1.44M (Starting to disappear. Apple no longer makes systems with floppy drives) • Hard Disk • Sizes start at about 20 G today and range on up. • Optical Drive • CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, often with “burning” capability

13. External Storage • Removable Mid-Range Storage • Flash drives use non-volatile memory, connect to the USB port, and act like another disk drive. Capacities range from about 64M to several G.

14. Printers • Ink Jet • Low cost, good quality text and graphics. But, relatively expensive to operate. Excellent color printing capability available at reasonable cost. • Laser • Best quality text and graphics, fastest printing. But, more expensive to buy and operate, especially for color.

15. Other Peripherals • USB ports – allow connectivity to various peripherals (e.g., printer, scanner, digital camera) • IEEE-1394 (Firewire) port – connectivity for digital video camcorder, external hard drive • Modem

16. Expandability • Expandability refers to the built-in capability for upgrading a particular computer. • Most computers today allow features to be added through the use of add-in boards which go into expansion slots in the machine. Memory can generally be expanded through the addition of memory chips (e.g., DIMMs) on the computer motherboard. Some computers are designed to allow upgrades to faster processors.

17. Service • Service is an important consideration. Level of selected service often depends on how critical the system is. • On-site service — repair persons come to your site to fix any problems. IBM is famous for this type of service but it is expensive. • Carry in service — computer is dropped off at vendor; most computer stores offer this. • Mail repair — in the worst case, the machine must be shipped to the manufacturer

18. Cost • Cost is always an important consideration. Costs for systems the "average" user might buy are now around $1,000 or so. Inexpensive systems can be purchased for under $500. Some high end systems may go for more than $3,000.

19. The End